It’s hard to fathom what the world looked like 150 years ago. In 1874, the lands west of the Bronx River was annexed to New York City to create its first borough. Queen Victoria had been on the British throne for 37 years, and would remain so for another 27. And over in the Swiss Jura mountains, in a little village named La Côte-aux-Fées which sits at over 1000 metres above sea level, a young 19-year-old watchmaker named Georges-Édouard Piaget was busy setting up his first shop on the family farm.
The latter’s dedication to excellence extended through generations with Georges-Édouard’s son, Timothée Piaget, laying the foundations for his father’s company to go from being a manufacturer of movements to a creator of luxury wristwatches and pocket watches. His sons, Gerald and Valentin, took over in 1945 with the latter developing some of the thinnest calibers ever made: 9P and 12P.
As the company’s success grew, clients started asking for bespoke jewellery to pair with their watches—earrings, rings, bangles, the list went on. In 1959, and in response to its clientele’s cries, Piaget opened its first salon in Geneva, a unique boutique with a simple sign: Piaget Horlogers Joailliers. Translated: Piaget, Watchmakers, Jewellers. For the first time, the house showed watches and jewellery side-by-side heralding the beginnings of the paragon of elegance that Piaget is today.
Cut to 2024—150 years since Georges-Édouard sat in his little shop on the farm—Piaget have released a new iteration of the house’s Possession collection. Originally released in the 1990s, the pieces were odes to the Maison’s mastery of gem-setting, goldsmithing, and technical prowess.
This year, the Possession Collection—with its haute couture aura—takes notes from the archives and the master goldsmiths and chain-makers from yesteryear to create playful, modern pieces. And with New York-born, British model and granddaughter of the Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards, Ella Rose Richards, as its face, Piaget has modernised itself by aligning with the epitome of irreverent chic.
The stars of the capsule are undoubtedly the five rings at its centre, each incorporating the Maison’s beloved gold-engraving designs. One displays dazzling sapphires, rubies and tsavorites which spin alongside a row of white diamonds. Another features an engraved snake motif, usually found on the Limelight Gala watch. Elsewhere, a plump, white-gold gourmette chain, braided palm chain and a twisted torsade.
Take a look at GRAZIA editors’ favourite pieces from Piaget’s new Possession Collection below.
This article first appeared on GRAZIA International.
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